Wearable Technology

Written by Sanjeev Kota Posted June 27, 2017 by Carolina

Sanjeev Kota

The growing popularity of wearable technological devices and gadgets that allow individuals to monitor their own health and wellness has created new channels for medical professionals to collect data on patients, as well as opportunities for enhancing the way providers interact with patients.

The rise of wearable technologies like FitBit, AppleWatch, Samsung Gear and apps on mobile devices for personal health monitoring have likewise increased the need for app development and integration services for the healthcare industry. Many healthcare facilities are still immature and cannot yet handle the amounts of data recorded on a patient's wearable device, but some are integrating their Electronic Health Record (EHR) software with wearable devices in order to utilize the raw data from wearable fitness gadgets and enhance the patient experience.

Nearly all wearable technologies for measuring wellness contain sensors that collect and store data on an individual's day-to-day activities and overall health. Enabling interoperability between wearable devices and EHR software allows healthcare providers to increase the accuracy of diagnoses and improve the delivery of treatments.

Information from a wearable device that tracks physical activity, fitness and eating habits can also be leveraged during clinical research trials and research studies for greater understanding on how a patient could be reacting to specific a treatment or medicine.

A well-developed connection between wearable tech devices and EHR software may even give caregivers the ability to monitor patients remotely and practice telemedicine with greater precision. Doctors and nurses could obtain real-time readings on a patient's heart-rate, blood pressure, glucose levels and more by simply connecting to their phone or wearable device.

The information gathered from a wearable device can be fed to a database, software application, or another remote system to display data and run analytics. Although medical facilities use a wide range of operating systems, there are steps currently being taken to allow data to be accessible in a uniform manner across a variety of platforms and devices.

It is possible that in the near future a combination of patient-generated data from wearable devices, cloud-based analytics, and first-hand insight from a healthcare practitioner could be used to provide more personalized and effective medical care.

Chetu, Inc. does not affect the opinion of this article. Any mention of specific names for software, companies or individuals does not constitute an endorsement from either party unless otherwise specified. All case studies and blogs are written with the full cooperation, knowledge and participation of the individuals mentioned. This blog should not be construed as legal advice.

Chetu was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Florida. We deliver World-Class Software Development Solutions serving entrepreneurs to Fortune 500 clients. Our services include process and systems design, package implementation, custom development, business intelligence and reporting, systems integration, as well as testing, maintenance and support. Chetu's expertise spans across the entire IT spectrum.